Photo credit: Gary W. Green/Orlando Sentinel
The Orlando Magic gave Rashard Lewis a six-year deal worth $118 million. That’s Kobe money, folks. The Magic overpaid for Lewis. That being said, if you’re going to overpay for a player, overpay for a guy that has ice water in his veins and can drill game-winning 3-pointers with 14 seconds left in the fourth quarter of one of the biggest games in his career, and team history.
With time winding down in the fourth quarter, the Orlando Magic were trying to complete a remarkable comeback in Cleveland against the Cavaliers. Lebron James, their self/Nike-proclaimed “King” was on his way to 50 points. Hedo Turkoglu was working the ball around, trying to find an open shooter for the three that would give Orlando a one-point lead with very little time left. Hedo got the ball to Lewis who failed to shake Anderson Varejao, but put the shot up anyway.
As that final Magic possession was unfolding, something strange happened on my television – the announcers went silent, the screen went black and white, and a familiar piano tune began to play. As the ball flushed out of the bottom of the net, the NBA playoff slogan came up on the screen, “Where will amazing happen this year?”
Wednesday night the NBA got an answer. Amazing happened. Lebron James put on one of the most phenomenal playoff shows ever scoring 49 points. Watching the King score is a treat. The people in that building will be able look back years from now and say, “I was there when Lebron scored 49 and still lost. Maybe if we’d have surrounded him with better talent, he wouldn’t have left for the Knicks and won all those titles there instead.”
Despite the long layoff between playoff games, the Cavs came out sharp and earned a 33-19 lead going into the second quarter. The second quarter was better for the Magic, but it still seemed as though they were going to be unable to make up the deficit they had slumped into. This was more apparent when Mo Williams sank a 66-footer at the halftime buzzer. Cleveland 63, Orlando 48.
Down 15 at the midpoint, Stan Van Gundy told the team that they looked like “witnesses” to Lebron’s dominance. This fueled the fire the Magic needed to outscore the Cavs 59-43 in the second half, giving Orlando a one-point victory.
With 10:06 to play Anthony “Wolverine” Johnson gave the Magic their first lead of the night with a 24-foot tre on the feed from Hedo Turkoglu, who came away with 15 points and 14 assists. With 6:07 on the clock, the two titans collided in the paint with Dwight Howard emerging victorious. Superman had the upper hand on the King. As James attempted to drive, Howard met him in the air and forced a fumbled mix between a pass, a shot, and a turnover. Johnson came away with the ball and the Magic received another shot of life from the veteran.
In the final two minutes of the game, the two teams combined for 18 points, including a pair of jumpers from Lewis. With 25 seconds left, Lebron made a free-throw to convert a three-point play and give his team the lead by two.
Lewis made amazing happen, and the Cavs regained possession with 14 seconds to play down by only one. James failed to make anything happen and forced Mo Williams into taking a tough 17-footer, then scrambled for the rebound and ended up getting a jump ball. With one second left in the game, James and Turkoglu jumped for the final possession. James tipped the ball back to Williams who narrowly missed the game-winning basket.
It was an amazing evening for the Magic and the NBA. Most importantly for Orlando, it gives the Magic home-court advantage in the series. If the Magic are able to hold-serve at the Amway Arena, they will move on to the NBA Finals for the first time in more than a decade.
